The Appellate Division has recently changed the procedural requirements which must be satisfied when local boards of education deny admission to a child pursuant to the terms of N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1. In conjunction with future regulations to be promulgated by the Commissioner of Education ("Commissioner"), the Appellate Division's decision recognizes and protects the due process rights of student applicants.
In J.A. v. Bd. of Educ. for the Dist. of South Orange and Maplewood, Dkt. No. A-1615-97T2 (App. Div. Mar. 2, 1999), J.A., a resident of South Orange, attempted to enroll her niece, T.C., in the District's high school without payment of tuition. The Board denied the application, claiming that J.A. failed to submit the requisite documentation in accordance with N.J.S.A., 18A:38-1.1 J.A. appealed the Board's decision to the Commissioner, challenging an alleged Board policy of automatically barring admission solely on the basis of a lack of documentation. Moreover, J.A. claimed that the form used by the Board in notifying her of its decision violated her rights to due process by failing to include either a statement of reasons for the denial of the application or specific details about the appeals procedure.2
The Commissioner found that T.C. was eligible to attend the District schools without payment of tuition, but rejected the arguments that the Board's demand for documentation was arbitrary and capricious, and that the Board's form of notice violated J.A.'s right to due process. The State Board of Education ("State Board") affirmed, adding only: [A] lack of documentation in support of the sworn statements required by N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1(b) may not necessarily bar a child from admission in a case in which documentation cannot be produced due to the particular circumstances of the situation … [A] district board policy that automatically bars admission solely on the basis of a lack of documentation, without permitting consideration of those circumstances, would be arbitrary and capricious. (Emphasis added). The State Board declined to decide the question of whether the South Orange-Maplewood Board actually had a policy of barring admission solely on the basis of a lack of documentation.
On appeal, the Appellate Division found in favor of J.A., holding first that there was ample evidence in the record supporting T.C.'s eligibility to attend the District's schools free of charge.
Second, the Appellate Division held that, notwithstanding the lack of documentation accompanying the enrollment application, the requirements of N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1 were satisfied by J.A. The Board was authorized to reject the application only if it concluded in good faith that the evidence does not support the validity of the claim by the resident. Agreeing with the conclusions reached by the State Board, the Appellate Division found that a board policy automatically barring admission solely on the basis of a lack of documentation would be arbitrary and capricious.
Third, the Appellate Division reversed the Commissioner and State Board, holding that the Board's decision was subject to the requirements of procedural due process. A board denying enrollment must inform the student applicant, and the resident who has applied on her behalf, of the grounds of its decision. Specifically, the Appellate Division wrote:
… basic fairness and the legislative policy implicit in N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1 dictate that a local board excluding a student in the position of T.C. should tell her and the resident who has applied on her behalf, first, just what they must do to perfect their appeal, and secondly, that the applicant may attend the appropriate school in the district immediately upon the board's receiving a copy of their petition.
(Emphasis added).
The Appellate Division then remanded the question of what information should be provided to the Commissioner, requiring that he promulgate a regulation applicable to all local boards of education prescribing the information to be included in a written statement rejecting an application for enrollment pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1(b).
In sum, in light of the J.A. decision, we recommend that local boards of education revisit their policy manuals and ensure that the procedures followed when enrollment is denied afford the applicant adequate due process.
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1 N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1 outlines those circumstances under which persons over 5 and under 20 years of age can attend public schools free of charge, including those sworn statements which must accompany the enrollment application. In pertinent part, the statute provides that the sworn statements shall be accompanied by documentation to support their validity. <>
2 The notice advised J.A. only that she had the right to contest the Board's decision with the Commissioner within 21 days.<>
